- Summary:
- German company CureVac indicates it may have a coronavirus vaccine ready in 2020, sending the DAX index higher on the news.
The DAX index is adding to yesterday’s strong performance with another bullish day, as German biotech firm CureVac has indicated it could have a coronavirus vaccine within a year.
According to a Reuters report monitored within the hour, the company says it will start receiving results of the first human trials in the fall of this year and will commence the Phase 2 trials in September. The Paul Ehrlich Institut, Germany’s vaccine regulator, confirmed the news, stating that the Phase 1 trial could last 15 months and would include 168 healthy adults. One hundred and forty-four (144) subjects of this number would receive the experimental vaccine, starting from this month. The regulator also said Phase 2 trials would commence if early data from the Phase 1 trial were promising.
This announcement means that CureVac becomes the second German company to start testing a coronavirus vaccine candidate on humans. The first was Biontech, which got approved for testing in April.
On Monday, Germany’s Ministry of Economic Affairs announced it would take a €300 million ($337 million) stake in Curevac, acquiring around 23% of the company’s shares. The aim is to protect the company from a potential takeover from abroad. The state said it did not wish to influence business decisions.
Download our Q2 Market Global Market Outlook
Outlook for the DAX
The German government is proposing to acquire a 23% stake in the CureVac worth €300 million ($337 million), to stave off acquisition by foreign interests. The DAX index is trading nearly 0.9% higher on this news and continues to trade at 12,421.20.
The DAX index is now challenging the nearest resistance at 12432.83. A breakout above this level allows the index asset to target the 12625.62 resistance target (20 June and 20 July 2019). The 12882.68 resistance (recent highs of June 8/9 2020 as well as the previous peak of 24 October 2019) lies overhead and could become a target if price advance continues.
Failure to breach the current resistance could provide a basis for a pullback towards the 200-SMA dynamic support. If this gives way, a further decline to 11995.83 and possibly 11713.07 (last week’s lows) may be likely.